This invention relates to the production of electric power, or other useful work, from solar energy.
In a solar chimney, energy from the sun heats the air in an elongated, enclosed vertical structure, so as to create an updraft in the structure. The moving air can then be used to drive a turbine to produce electric power, or it can be made to perform other useful work.
Examples of solar chimneys, as shown in the prior art, are given in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,979,597, 4,275,309, 4,331,042, 4,433,544, 5,381,048, 6,016,015, 6,089,021, 6,772,593, and 7,026,723, and in U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. 20080156315, 20080156316, 20080156317, and 20080156318, the disclosures of all of which are incorporated by reference herein.
The present invention provides improvements over the solar chimneys of the prior art. The solar chimney of the present invention is shaped advantageously to reduce losses due to friction caused by the updrafts flowing in the chimney. The present invention also provides means for harnessing the energy of wind in the environment of the chimney, wherein such energy can be used to assist in drawing air through the interior of the chimney.